Republican LG nominee begins with three day swing through Inland Empire region where unemployment rates are more than 30% above national average SAN DIEGO - Highlighting California's lagging and uneven economy, Republican Lieutenant Governor nominee Ron Nehring will focus on the state's most economically distressed areas beginning with a three day tour of the Inland Empire this week.

"Californians are struggling with high unemployment and a so-called 'recovery' that is leaving millions of people behind," said Nehring, who will visit with small businesses and workers in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties beginning tomorrow. "In an election year we expect plenty of flowery spin coming out of Sacramento. Our goal is to focus on the real life challenges people are facing in the real world, particularly in areas that continue to be hit hard."

A LAGGING RECOVERY. California's 7.6% unemployment rate is the fourth worst nationally, and the state's labor force participation rate is the lowest since 1976. The national unemployment rate, by contrast, is 6.3% and in Texas, the state's toughest economic competitor, it is is just 5.1%.

AN UNEVEN RECOVERY. Claims that California is economically on the right track are being driven largely by lower unemployment in Silicon Valley, Orange County and to a lesser extent, San Diego County where unemployment is 6% or less. Yet, in other parts of the state, rates are double or triple that. In 44 of California's 58 counties, the local unemployment rate is above the national average.

The unemployment rate in San Francisco is just 4.4%, the third lowest in the state. Meanwhile, less than 100 miles away in Colusa County, unemployment is nearly 20%. In Southern California, the rate in San Diego is 6%, while in neighboring Imperial County, it is 21.9%, one of the highest in the nation. In Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, unemployment remains high at 8.3%.